Mission Sunday - SSPX Nigeria

SSPX Mission appeal for Nigeria 

Background

The history of the apostolate of the Society of Saint Pius X in Nigeria began in the mid-1990s with contacts between the faithful who wanted to see the return of the Mass of all time to their country and the priests of the Mission of Saint Pius X in Libreville, Gabon. Infrequent visits took place over the following fifteen years, when the Fraternity was still unable to dedicate a permanent team of priests to this new field of apostolate. 

The apostolate became more sustained with the arrival of Fr. Gregory Obih, OSA (†), who joined the Fraternity's apostolate and, in the early 2010s, became the rallying point for many traditional communities. So when the decision to open a Priory in Nigeria was finally taken, much of the preparatory work for the installation of our confreres in this unstable country had already been undertaken. 

St. Michael's Priory in Enugu was officially inaugurated and blessed by Fr. Alain-Marc Nély (then Second Assistant General of the Fraternity) on 26 August 2012. 

The following years were occupied by a continuous work of making contacts and by decisions taken in the orientation of the apostolate. Many of the smaller Mass centres (such as the rural community of Achala) were eventually abandoned in favour of the larger urban centres. The four priests of Prieuré Saint Michel are responsible for almost 1,000 souls in five chapels. 

During the week, some priests are busy at the Priory with the formation of pre-seminarians (mainly Latin courses, but also catechetical training for teaching, holy history, Church history, Gregorian chant, etc.). Nigeria has already given the Fraternity a priest and an Oblate sister. Two seminarians are currently undergoing training in the seminaries of Dillwyn and La Reja, and three other young men are due to leave the Priory at the end of this year to return to La Reja in March 2024. A young lady from Abuja, the administrative capital of Nigeria, has begun her Novitiate with the Consoling Sisters of the Sacred Heart in Narni, Italy. 

Why we need donations

We want to acquire a plot of land in Abuja and build a chapel there. The community now exceeds the capacity of the room generously made available to it. What's more, the premises are on the verge of becoming truly unhealthy unless we spend money on them, which we'd rather not do since we don't own the property. 

The faithful are well aware that they will have to make major sacrifices to acquire land and build a chapel. But with the best will in the world (and because of Nigeria's faltering economy) they probably won't be able to come up with even 10% of the sum needed. We must therefore turn to your charity with the assurance of brothers in the Faith who know how to help. 

Masses and prayers are frequently offered for our living and deceased benefactors. 

As St Paul wrote to the Corinthians: "in the present circumstance your [material] superfluity will provide for their needs so that their [spiritual] superfluity may also provide for yours".